Listening Is an Act of Love

Drawn from the work of StoryCorps, the largest and most ambitious private oral history project in American history, comes this tapestry of the stories Americans have been sharing from their lives to leave behind to their loved ones.

On Target: A Gray Man Novel

Four years ago, assassin Court Gentry was betrayed by his handlers in the CIA. Now, an old comrade returns to haunt him - and to force him on a mission against his will. With his ruthless employers on one side, his former friends on the other, and a doomed mission ahead, Court Gentry would kill to get out of this one alive.

For me, The Grey Man ended with unanswered questions so I went right into Book II. In this bigger than life adventure Court Gentry ends up as part of a team with the nickname Six. I think my favorite part of this book was his interaction with his team and his going from being a one man show to part of the team and not being the leader.

FREE The Gray Man

Court Gentry is known as The Gray Man - a legend in the covert realm, moving silently from job to job, accomplishing the impossible, and then fading away. And he always hits his target. But there are forces more lethal than Gentry in the world. And in their eyes, Gentry has just outlived his usefulness. Now, he is going to prove that for him, there's no gray area between killing for a living-and killing to stay alive.

White Fire: Agent Pendergast, Book 13

Special Agent Pendergast arrives at an exclusive Colorado ski resort to rescue his protégée, Corrie Swanson, from serious trouble with the law. His sudden appearance coincides with the first attack of a murderous arsonist who - with brutal precision - begins burning down multimillion-dollar mansions with the families locked inside. After springing Corrie from jail, Pendergast learns she made a discovery while examining the bones of several miners who were killed 150 years earlier by a rogue grizzly bear.

This was not my favorite Pendergast novel but I am glad I listened to it! Pendergast still is recovering from Book 12 and it seems that the length of his recovery process is pushing him to give it up. Corrie snaps him out of his lethargy and at the same time makes the listener want to snap her out of rationalizing consistently bad and stupid decisions. I especially loved Pendergast's reaction when he meets a woman who truly has the courage of her convictions. Rene Auberjonois is outstanding, one of my favorites.

Why we think it’s a great listen: The best book club you’ve never heard of – but will be eager to join, courtesy of a full cast of true characters. January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she's never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb....

What I like about this book is it has it all - in just the right proportions. It is a love story but not with gushy make you squirm excessive details, it has unanswered questions about what happened which are explained but not in graphic, unsettling and upsetting horrors of war details. It even explains what a Potato Peel Pie is and how to make it! The character development is realistic, sometimes surprising and creates people you would like to know. Most of all I loved the healing of these people as they adjust to life after living on a German occupied island during World War II. Delightful!

The Luminaries

It is 1866 and Walter Moody has come to make his fortune upon the New Zealand goldfields. On arrival, he stumbles across a tense gathering of 12 local men, who have met in secret to discuss a series of unsolved crimes. A wealthy man has vanished, a whore has tried to end her life, and an enormous fortune has been discovered in the home of a luckless drunk. Moody is soon drawn into the mystery: a network of fates and fortunes that is as complex and exquisitely patterned as the night sky.

This story is told and retold slightly different while strongly the same. In spite of the multiple characters, Ms Catton's descriptions create clear distinctions avoiding confusion over who is who. The book is very different thanks to the distinctive writing style. Be warned: if you decide to listen to this book - it is very long and repetitive but there is no way it could be any different. I thought I was at the end only to realize that was not the case. I understand the story, the plot, the character and the achievement of the complex writing but I do not understand the end. So the wheel goes around again?

Still Foolin' 'Em: Where I've Been, Where I'm Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys

Billy Crystal is 65, and he's not happy about it. With his trademark wit and heart, he outlines the absurdities and challenges that come with growing old, from insomnia to memory loss to leaving dinners with half your meal on your shirt. In humorous chapters like ""Buying the Plot"" and ""Nodding Off,"" Crystal not only catalogues his physical gripes, but offers a road map to his 77 million fellow baby boomers who are arriving at this milestone age with him. He also looks back at the most powerful and memorable moments of his long and storied life, from entertaining his relatives as a kid in Long Beach, Long Island, and his years doing stand-up in the Village, up through his legendary stint at Saturday Night Live, When Harry Met Sally, and his long run as host of the Academy Awards. Listeners get a front-row seat to his one-day career with the New York Yankees (he was the first player to ever ""test positive for Maalox""), his love affair with Sophia Loren, and his enduring friendships with several of his idols, including Mickey Mantle and Muhammad Ali. He lends a light touch to more serious topics like religion (""the aging friends I know have turned to the Holy Trinity: Advil, bourbon, and Prozac""); grandparenting; and, of course, dentistry. As wise and poignant as they are funny, Crystal's reflections are an unforgettable look at an extraordinary life well lived.

Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger

Ten years ago, an FBI investigation was about to expose a scandal in the art world that would have been front-page news in New York and London. After a trail of fake paintings of astonishing quality led federal agents to art dealers, experts, and major auction houses, the investigation inexplicably ended, despite an abundance of evidence. The case was closed and the FBI file was marked “exempt from public disclosure”. Now that the statute of limitations on these crimes has expired and the case appears hermetically sealed shut by the FBI, this audiobook, Caveat Emptor, is that artist, Ken Perenyi’s, confession.

What would of happened if Ken Perenyl had channeled his talent into producing his own art? If he had taken this much time and study to perfect his own style? It was sad to listen to him brag about the price of one of his forgeries to hear about it 'melting' during cleaning as the forgery is discovered without a twinge of consciousness. I had to listen to it as a story rather that non-fiction - his life, his work and his attitude are unbelievable.

The Mummy Case: The Amelia Peabody Series, Book 3

The indomitable Amelia Peabody and her husband, known to many as "the Father of Curses", are into archaeology and mischief again. This third in the series brings the reader once more into Egypt and the shady world of black market antiquities. The winter excavation season has hardly yet begun when Amelia stumbles onto what looks suspiciously like a ring of thieves.

It is not Amelia's style of mothering that I admire but her acceptance of how she sees her role as Ramsey's mother, Amelia is just herself. Her interactions with others, even the cat, seem natural and believable. This is such a great series!

Lion in the Valley: The Amelia Peabody Series, Book 4

Amelia Peabody, archaeologist and woman extraordinaire, should have greeted the approaching excavation with transports of joy. Nothing in the world could compare with exploring the muddy, musty corridors of some bat-infested pyramid. And at Dahshoor, to which she was headed, there existed some particularly fine specimens.

These books are wonderful! Everything about them is good: story, narration and especially writing style. Amelia Peabody? what a fantastic name and it sets the tone for the series so far. This is a great listen, cannot recommend it highly enough

Never Go Back: A Jack Reacher Novel, Book 18

Former military cop Jack Reacher makes it all the way from snowbound South Dakota to his destination in northeastern Virginia, near Washington, D.C.: the headquarters of his old unit, the 110th MP. The old stone building is the closest thing to a home he ever had. Reacher is there to meet - in person - the new commanding officer, Major Susan Turner, so far just a warm, intriguing voice on the phone. But it isn’t Turner behind the CO’s desk. And Reacher is hit with two pieces of shocking news, one with serious criminal consequences, and one too personal to even think about.

Reacher has been such a great series, but I think the plots, action and women are wearing thin for me. That isn't to say I won't be ready for the next one when it comes out but for right now I am glad the series is out of unheard books.

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